Dub Jam eyes London-wide expansion
The fast casual group, which is co-owned by Adventure Bars, is looking to raise £450k over the next three months to open in target areas of London including Stratford, Battersea, Shepherds Bush, Hammersmith, Tooting Broadway, Fulham, Putney, Clapham, Kentish Town and Camden, Tom Kidd, co-founder told M&C Report.
These areas have been highlighted as having populations of young professionals with disposable income but are underrepresented for casual dining brands.
Kidd said: “The plan is to stick to London for the next couple of years then start looking at university towns after that.”
Dub Jam is also looking to break into the US market and pilot its concept in Los Angeles and is in early discussions with a major operator in Las Vegas to bring the concept there, with the opportunity for franchises for experienced international operators.
Crowdfunding buzz
In December Dub Jam launched a second funding round to raise £450k through Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) to fuel its expansion and has opted for crowdfunding to raise the profile of the brand.
“Crowdfunding is a model we think will work from a consumer angle to get in with fans of the business buying in to it and as a PR angle to get a buzz about it,” Kidd said.
The pilot site was launched in the ground floor unit above the Adventure Bar site in Bedford Street in Covent Garden but future restaurant sites will be stand alone.
The group said that the concept would offer “cool Reggae beats, spicy jerk, tasty beach burgers and rum cocktails”.
Adventure Bars currently operates three sites, including two in Clapham after closing its bar in Lordship Lane, East Dulwich, earlier this year.
The company is predicting like-for-like sales growth of 30 per cent after the first nine months of trading it saw footfall of 12.5k.
